Tables shipped in assembled form are bulky and hard to handle, and also limit the capacity of shipping containers and trucks. These factors add to the handling costs of such tables. Further, assembling a table in the factory necessarily adds assembly costs, which are passed on to the consumer in the form of an increased table cost. A solution to the problems of shipping space and factory assembly expenses is to ship tables in unassembled or "knock-down" form.
Another important concern of table construction is the ease of assembly and disassembly. The current construction of certain tables with intricate moldings and contoured shapes render these tables difficult to assemble. Furthermore, some of these tables cannot be fully disassembled due to their design. This leads to an excessive amount of manufacturing time and costs, and also leads to excessive shipping volume being taken up by the fully assembled table. Proposed solutions have included tables designed with complex assemblies for pivotal or collapsible legs, as well as systems with removable table tops to permit tables to be folded into flattened shapes. These assemblies and systems, while convenient and relatively compact for shipment, have added dramatically to the cost of the tables due to the complexity of manufacturing and assembling. Thus, there remains a need to provide the user with an inexpensive and versatile table that is easy to assemble and disassemble.
Another concern of manufacturers is the versatility of knock-down furniture. For instance, many manufacturers employ interior designers when designing their tables and table components so as to design tables that meet the consumer's needs and tastes, including a range of decorative styles. In this regard, manufacturers are clearly concerned with the user's likes and dislikes. To this end, it is also useful to have simple and inexpensive tables that have interchangeable Components, e.g., decorative table tops, as well as the capability of easy disassembly, especially for those users who have a range of needs and/or tastes applicable to one table. By way of example, a user may need a table for outdoor use, and as such, require a rugged and durable table top. Alternatively, the user may want to bring the same table inside, at which time a more formal or more decorative table top is desired. Any such table tops should be easily removable and interchangeable.
Manufacturers of knock-down tables are also concerned with the easy assembly and disassembly of a table, including the capability of compact storage. Disassembly includes the ability to fully dismantle all components of the table, including the legs, shelves, and table top. It is also highly desirable to facilitate disassembly by designing a simple table construction, such as pop-in pieces, which do not utilize bolts or other mechanical means.
Several inventors have attempted to devise methods for the construction of tables to facilitate easy assembly and disassembly. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 2,310,904 to J. E. Bales discloses a gas welding table consisting of four legs, wherein each leg has an extension-like flange having a vertical and a horizontal portion. Placed on the horizontal portion of the extension-like flange is a shelf having an inwardly extending flange and a plurality of ridges for storage purposes. A plurality of side panels are attached via a bolt assembly to the upper portion of the legs. Each side panel is provided with an outstanding horizontally and upstanding flange. Center reinforcement strips are also provided, and are disposed parallel to opposed pairs of side panels for additional support. The top of the table consists of noninterchangeable firebricks that lie on the legs and center reinforcement strips. Though designed for user assembly, this table is not designed for easy assembly and disassembly. Further, the table is not a consumer item, is very complex, and does not lend itself to varying uses, such as a variety of recreational uses.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,660,501 to C. P. Molla describes a combination table leg and table top retainer. Specifically, this invention relates to a detachable leg structure, wherein the leg members consist of upward extending end portions which protrude above the upper surface of the table frame to engage peripheral edges of a table top. The leg members are formed from a single strip of metal and are secured to a frame. The frame comprises four sides, each side having depending peripheral and horizontal walls. The horizontal walls are cut at a 45 degree angle to meet the horizontal walls of the adjacent side of the frame.
Another table construction is described in U.S. Pat. No. 2,903,312 to C. J. Lawless (the "'312 patent"). The '312 patent discloses a reversible table top construction, wherein leg assemblies are secured to a support frame at their upper ends. The support frame comprises an upwardly extending peripheral flange conforming to the shape of the table top. The table top includes a rectangular table top having a top, a bottom, and edges. The edges of the table top have bore portions which have magnets anchored therein, and are aligned with apertured portions of the upwardly extending peripheral flanges. Ferrous material retaining pins extend through the apertured portions of the upwardly extending peripheral flange, and the bored portions of the panel have the magnets disposed therein. The retaining pins maintain the position of the table top within the support frame. This invention provides a novel method of leg attachment.
Lastly, U.S. Pat. No. 4,467,730 to Borichevsky discloses a table with a releasable top for outdoor use. This invention provides a table with a plurality of U-shaped leg frames, each having a recess therein. The U-shaped leg frames are permanently attached to one another, thereby forming the frame of the table. The recess consists of a downwardly directed bottom wall and an upwardly directed top wall, wherein the top wall has a lip which overhangs the recess. The two walls are disposed in angular relationship to each other. The table top fits into the recess of the U-shaped leg frames. When in place, the table top is located below the plane of the top surfaces of the leg frames, and is held in place by the overhanging lips of the recess.
All of the above references use fastening mechanisms and complex assemblies that do not necessarily allow for easy manufacture, assembly, and disassembly in a manner that would lend itself to consumer uses. Further, the above references do not afford the user with a table that has interchangeable parts, and that is capable of being fully dismantled into its constituent components for compact shipping and storage. Additionally, these above tables do not cater to varying consumer uses, such as for outdoor and indoor activity.
What is needed to meet the needs of consumers for occasional tables and the construction thereof is a durable table that allows for easy manufacture and subsequent assembly, interchangeability of table parts, and the advantage of being able to be fully dismantled for shipping and storage. Such a table would include several table tops of varying designs that can be interchanged by the user, yet be easy to assemble and disassemble. The table would be constructed so that all constituent components are securely fixed to one another utilizing a simple design fashioned for easy assembly and disassembly. The construction of the table would also include at least one removable shelf disposed between the legs (or other places as the user desires) that would further add to the stability and strength of the table. The shelf would have fixed downward leg extensions that would attach to apertures on the table frame. The downward leg extensions would add to the stability and strength of the table by providing a common mechanism that fastens all the legs to a common component. The downward leg extensions would also facilitate the easy assembly of the table, wherein the downward leg extensions also would act as alignment pins for the proper placement and alignment of the shelf with respect to the flanged legs and top frame.